FXI Cotton Candy USB Sweetens Portable Computer Function

Who would have thought that a new gadget as small as a stick of gum could work ultimately like a computer without the monitor? Who would have thought that it could put Android OS in your Mac or Windows PC? Finally, who would have imagined that it would somehow gather buzz under a code name like ‘Cotton Candy’?

A Norwegian company named FXI Technologies created not only a device that will allow you to carry your own computer on a USB stick but will also enable Google’s Android OS to load on just about every computer or HDMI TV.

The FXI Cotton Candy USB Drive—whose prototype was showed off to the public this month—deviates from the usual portable computers of today such as tablets, smartphones and media players that have huge screens for more comfortable viewing. The idea of the Cotton Candy is a PC on a stick, which means it is up to the user to come up with a monitor.

The Cotton Candy features an ARM Cortex 1.2GHz CPU which is similar to the hottest tablet today – the Samsung Galaxy SII. It also has a Quad Core ARM Mali GPU so you can view your 1080 videos on a big screen. It also features 1GB worth of RAM, a microSD for its storage, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. What’s more, it features an HDMI dongle on one end so you can make sure to use it on wide screen TVs, and a USB port on the other end for ultimate connectivity with other computers. Don’t even ask me how they were able to squeeze all of those specs into one highly calibrated USB device!

One of the winning elements of the 2.5cm by 8 cm FXI Cotton Candy USB stick is its portability. For instance, you’re on a travel adventure to a remote location – would you bring your laptop? Would you bring your iPad? Yes, but not when you already have a PC stick that weighs less than pocket change. All you need to do is to load the FXI Cotton Candy USB drive on any computer (say, the one in the common area of your hostel) so you can now start using your “own” computer.

Some of the projected benefits of the Cotton Candy are friendly access to the Cloud, adoption of “smart screens”, extending the lives of laptops, monitors, TVs, tablets, and what-have-you’s. Create one point of storage for your computing needs as well as easier sharing of media files to projectors and large screens. Last but definitely not least, this custom USB drive allows consumers to cut down on their computing costs which may arise when they repeatedly buy new devices such as computers.

The FXI Cotton Candy USB drive, however, will only be available come second half of 2012 and is projected to be sold at $200 (not bad for a computer the size of a cigarette lighter!).

We think the Cotton Candy is worth saving for. Do you agree? Your thoughts matter so leave a shout out here!